I’m a Doorman at an Assassin’s Hotel

"Ahhhhhh!"

I clung to Chev's waist for dear life, my voice cracking as I screamed. The wind roared in my ears, competing with the deafening growl of the motorcycle's engine. It felt like we were riding a runaway beast, hurtling down the slick streets at breakneck speed, water spraying everywhere as the tires sliced through puddles.

"Shut up, kid!" Chev shouted over his shoulder, his tone laced with mockery. "If you keep screaming like that, people are gonna think I kidnapped you!"

"Slow down!" I wailed, my soul practically separating from my body. "Why the hell are you driving this deathtrap so fast? We're gonna die!"

"Time-sensitive mission!" Chev grinned like a madman, yanking the handlebars to make a sharp turn. The bike drifted dangerously close to a trash can and barely missed a lamppost.

"I'm gonna die!" My stomach churned, and I swore silently to myself: If I survive this, I'm never partnering with this lunatic again.

The bike screeched to a halt in front of an abandoned warehouse. Chev dismounted gracefully, while I stumbled off the bike like a drunkard, my legs trembling so much I almost collapsed onto the pavement.

"Not bad!" Chev smirked, locking the bike. "Was that bravery I saw, or just the art of cowardice?"

"You're insane!" I leaned against the wall, panting as I glared at him. My voice was filled with accusation. "You almost killed me back there when you nearly hit that lamppost!"

"Aw, don't be so dramatic." Chev shrugged, utterly unapologetic. "Didn't I get you here in one piece? Told you I'd take care of you, didn't I?"

"Take care of me? You strapped me to that bike like a throw pillow!" I rolled my eyes, regretting every decision that led to me agreeing to work with him.

Chev clapped me on the shoulder, his trademark mischievous grin in full force. "Alright, Lorne, no time to whine. Let's get this job done." He pulled a map out from the bike's rear compartment and spread it on the ground, pointing to a corner of the warehouse.

"This is the target point," he said with obvious excitement. "The goods are inside, but there are plenty of guards. You'll draw their attention while I take care of the rest."

"Wait!" I snapped my head up, staring at him in disbelief. "What do you mean, draw their attention? Are you sending me to my death?"

"Relax, I've got your back!" Chev grinned even wider. "It's easy—run around, make some noise, look cool while you're at it. Once all eyes are on you, I'll slip in and grab the goods. Simple, right?"

"You're a bastard!" I hissed through clenched teeth. As much as I wanted to argue, I knew I didn't have a choice. The hotel gave the orders, and failing the mission wasn't an option.

"Quit whining!" Chev checked his watch, impatience flickering across his face. "Time's ticking, rookie—get moving!"

A few minutes later, I stood at the side of the warehouse, my nerves buzzing like a nest of disturbed wasps. In the distance, guards and their dogs patrolled, their flashlights cutting through the darkness. Overhead, a spotlight swept across the area in slow arcs.

"Move it, kid!" Chev's voice hissed from the shadows. He waved at me, his tone brimming with sadistic glee.

"Fine, if I die, I die…" I muttered, taking a deep breath before darting out from cover.

Clang! I deliberately kicked over a pile of metal barrels, the loud crash echoing through the night.

"Who's there?" A guard immediately barked, raising his gun in my direction.

"Hey! Your pizza's here!" My brain short-circuited, and the dumbest words flew out of my mouth. Without waiting for a reaction, I bolted.

"Get him!" The guards shouted as they chased after me, their weapons glinting ominously under the moonlight.

Panting and desperate, I focused on one thought: Don't get caught. Don't get caught. Behind me, Chev chuckled, his grin widening as he melted into the shadows, clearly slipping into the warehouse undetected.

Of course, I got caught.

"Who sent you?!" The rough voice boomed like thunder, accompanied by the sound of a fist slamming onto the table. The metallic clang made my ears ring.

I was tied to a rusty metal chair, my hands bound behind me. A group of burly men in black suits loomed over me, their intimidating leader glaring with a cold, murderous gaze. In his hand, he held a thick wooden baton, which he twirled threateningly as if deciding when to strike.

"Hey, take it easy, man." I forced a nervous laugh, trying to appear nonchalant, though my insides were churning. How did things get this bad?

One of the men sneered, grabbing my chin and forcing me to look him in the eye. "Don't play games, punk. You had the guts to trespass on our turf, so you'd better be ready for the consequences. Now, tell me—who sent you?"

I swallowed hard, my brain scrambling for an answer that wouldn't get me killed on the spot.

"Uh, actually…" I cleared my throat, attempting to sound composed. "I'm just lost. Really. I was passing by and suddenly… uh, got dragged in here."

"Lost?" The man clearly didn't buy it. His glare darkened as he gestured to one of his lackeys. "Teach him a lesson. Let's see how long he can keep lying."

"Wait! Wait!" I yelped as one of the guards approached, baton in hand. "You've got the wrong guy! I was just… uh… just…"

"Just… cleaning!" I blurted out, the ridiculous excuse escaping my mouth before I could stop it. The room fell silent for a second.

"Cleaning?" The men exchanged confused glances before bursting into raucous laughter. Some doubled over, clutching their sides, while others snorted so hard they had to lean against the wall.

"You're pretty funny, kid," the leader chuckled, wiping a tear from his eye. He raised the baton again.

"Wait! I'm serious!" I shouted, my voice rising in desperation. "I'm a professional cleaner! Look at this place—there's dirt everywhere! I just wanted to help you guys spruce things up!"

The leader lowered the baton slightly, tilting his head as if considering my words. "Oh yeah? Then tell me, what needs cleaning?"

I scanned the room frantically before pointing to a dusty pipe in the corner. "There! That pipe—it's a health hazard! An organization like yours should really care about its image."

The laughter returned, louder than before. The leader slapped his knee, still laughing, as he leaned down and grinned in my face. "Nice try, kid. But this ain't a cleaning service."

Before he could continue, the door burst open with a deafening crash.

"Who dares lay a hand on my guy?"

Chev Chelios stood in the doorway, a mischievous grin plastered on his face and an unlit cigarette dangling from his lips. In his hand was an electrified weapon crackling with blue sparks.

"Hey, janitor boy," Chev called to me lazily, his grin widening. "Didn't break you, did they? Forgot to mention, I'm the shift supervisor tonight."

The black-suited men froze momentarily, but quickly regained their composure, drawing their weapons and aiming at Chev.

"Well, looks like we've got ourselves a party tonight," Chev said with a wide grin, flipping the switch on his electric gun. Bright blue sparks flickered ominously at the barrel.

"Damn it, Chev! Get me out of here!" I shouted, my voice cracking with panic. Internally, I was already praying: Please, please don't make this worse…

Chev, as always, ignored me completely. With the cigarette still unlit between his teeth and that signature smirk plastered on his face, he strolled forward nonchalantly. The electric gun hummed softly, its sparks intensifying like a coiled predator ready to strike.

"Who the hell are you?" The bald leader of the group gripped his baton tightly, his icy gaze locked on Chev. "You've got a death wish, barging into our territory?"

Chev bit down on his cigarette and smirked even wider. "Cut the crap. Where's the package?"

The bald man sneered, motioning for his men. "Kill him!"

Before the words were fully out of his mouth, the black-suited guards raised their weapons, ready to fire.

"Oh, such warm hospitality," Chev said mockingly. With a shrug, he raised the electric gun and pulled the trigger. A loud crack echoed through the room as the nearest guard was hit square in the chest. The man convulsed violently before collapsing in a twitching heap.

"Get him!" the bald man bellowed, charging toward Chev with his baton raised.

"Come on, then!" Chev roared, his grin twisting into a maniacal smile. In one fluid motion, he whipped out a shotgun and fired at the next closest guard.

Bang! Bang!

The shotgun roared, sending guards flying backward like ragdolls.

Chev's sheer chaos left me slack-jawed. He wielded the shotgun like an extension of his body, and when he wasn't blasting holes in his enemies, he deftly retrieved his electric gun and used it to zap anyone foolish enough to get too close. The room reverberated with deafening gunfire and sizzling electricity, leaving me clutching my ears in agony.

"Take him down!" the bald man yelled, but his men's attempts to fight back were futile. Chev's relentless assault pinned them down, their retaliatory fire scattered and ineffective.

"You think this handful of lackeys can stop me?" Chev taunted, diving behind an overturned table to reload his shotgun with alarming speed. In a single, smooth motion, he popped back up and fired a devastating shot at the bald man's cover.

Boom!

Wooden splinters exploded everywhere as the cover was obliterated. The bald man scrambled to the side, glaring daggers at Chev. "You think you've won already, you bastard?"

Seizing the opportunity, I darted to another piece of cover and raised my pistol. I aimed carefully at an approaching guard.

Bang! Bang!

My shots hit him square in the knee, and he collapsed with a howl of pain.

"Not bad, rookie!" Chev called over his shoulder, sounding almost impressed. His grin grew even more audacious. "Finally pulling your weight, huh?"

"Shut up!" I snapped, firing again at another enemy.

The guards' numbers began to dwindle, but the bald leader was proving to be a tougher nut to crack. He unleashed a barrage of gunfire toward Chev, forcing him to dive for cover.

"Hey, rookie!" Chev yelled. "How about a little assist over here?"

I took a deep breath, steadied my aim, and fired at the bald man.

Bang!

The bullet hit his shoulder, and he let out a pained grunt as his weapon slipped from his grasp. He fell to the floor, clutching his injured arm.

Chev wasted no time. He rushed forward and pressed the shotgun barrel to the bald man's forehead, his grin more unhinged than ever. "Well, well… got anything clever to say now?"

Sweat dripped from the bald man's brow as he clenched his jaw. "You think this is over? This is just the beginning…"

"Oh?" Chev raised an eyebrow, his voice dripping with mockery. "Let's see what tricks you've got left."

Before the bald man could respond, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from the far side of the room.

I turned toward the noise, my stomach sinking as several heavily armed reinforcements stormed in, their weapons trained directly on us.

"Shit!" I cursed under my breath, grabbing Chev and yanking him behind cover. "We've got reinforcements!"

Chev's grin only widened. "Perfect. Just what we needed to spice things up! Get ready for round two, rookie!"

Panting, I ducked behind the cover and checked my pistol. Only a few bullets left. Meanwhile, the reinforcements were already spreading out, taking strategic positions.

"Chev, tell me you've got backup weapons," I whispered.

"Of course I do." Chev pulled a flash grenade from his pocket and twirled it like a toy. "See this little beauty? She'll buy us a few seconds."

"A few seconds?!" I glared at him. "You think that's enough to get us out of here?"

"Rookie, this isn't about getting out. It's about taking them down." His eyes gleamed with excitement as he pulled the pin on the grenade and lobbed it into the midst of the reinforcements.

"Flashbang!" someone shouted, and the soldiers scrambled to shield their eyes.

Bang!

The room was consumed by a blinding white light. Taking advantage of the chaos, I sprang out from cover, firing at the clustered enemies.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Several of them went down, clutching their wounds, while the rest retreated to find new cover.

Chev, laughing like a madman, unleashed his shotgun at close range.

Boom! Boom!

The sheer force of the blasts rattled the walls and sent the remaining guards scrambling.

"Fall back!" one of them shouted, and the survivors began retreating toward the hallway.

"Don't let them get away!" Chev yelled, vaulting over the cover with startling agility. He charged after the retreating guards, firing relentlessly.

Bang!

The last guard fell, and silence finally descended upon the room.

I leaned against the nearest wall, gasping for breath. My entire body felt like it was about to give out. "Where the hell did these guys come from?"

Chev slung his shotgun over his shoulder and strolled back toward me, completely unfazed. "They were just the warm-up, rookie. Don't sweat it."

"Warm-up?" I stared incredulously at the bodies strewn across the room. "You call this a warm-up?"

"Yup." Chev smirked and pulled a cigarette from his pocket, sticking it between his teeth. He bent down and picked up the radio dropped by the bald man. "But this little toy might tell us something fun."

He pressed the call button and mimicked the bald man's gruff voice. "Target neutralized. Requesting immediate backup."

There was a brief pause before a low, gruff voice replied, "Copy that. Evac team en route."

My stomach dropped. "Evac team? They've got more reinforcements?"

Chev's grin widened. "Even better. We're gonna hitch a ride and pay their headquarters a visit."

"You're insane!" I hissed. "We've already been through hell, and you want to walk straight into their base?"

Chev patted my shoulder, his eyes gleaming with unbridled excitement. "Rookie, this is what the Shadow Hotel is all about—never let your enemies know just how far you're willing to go."

I wanted to argue, but his infectious confidence rendered me speechless. As crazy as he was, there was no denying the magnetic pull of his audacity.

"Fine," I muttered, gripping my pistol tightly. "Let's go all in."

Chev chuckled, his cigarette bouncing between his teeth. "Now you're talking. Don't worry—I've got your back."

He quickly gathered some ammunition, slung a mysterious metal case over his shoulder, and picked up an extra submachine gun from the floor. Without a backward glance, he strode toward the door.